Smoking and Blood Clots: How Smoking Leads to Sticky Blood
A lot of people, commercials, advertisements, and almost everybody and everything on this planet would have told you about how smoking is bad for you.
By now, you would already know how smoking causes several extremely harmful and life-threatening diseases like cancer, heart issues, and so much more.
But did somebody ever tell you that smoking can also mess with your blood? Yes, you read it right.
Smoking makes your blood thicker and stickier – different from its original composition. This transition of blood can lead to life-threatening problems and diseases.
Thinking how? Let us help you. Let us assume blood is a river that is flowing indefinitely and smoothly in its due course of action. As we learned in childhood, blood carries oxygen and nutrients to all the cells in your body.
Now, as and when you smoke, you throw a bucket full of mud and other dirt in that river. All of this makes the blood thicker and stickier. This, in turn, makes the blood flow slow and might cause a clot.
It’s time to delve into the relationship between smoking and blood clots. Let’s see everything in detail and clear all the myths surrounding the question – “Can Smoking Cause Blood Clots?”
Smoking and Blood Clots: What are Blood Clots, and how are they formed?
Before we start to explore and understand the concept of blood clots from smoking, it’s essential to understand what blood clots are. To make it easier for you, Blood clots are hard masses that form in your bloodstream when several blood elements get grouped.
Not to forget, blood clots are required in your body to heal wounds, but excessive of anything isn’t good, and so are blood clots. Excessive blood clots can be life-threatening as they can block the flow of blood to essential organs, which can lead to heart attacks, strokes, or pulmonary blockages.
So, back to the question: how does smoking cause blood clots? Here is the answer. All those harmful chemicals present in cigarettes harm the inner lining of your blood vessels. Scientifically, this process is known as endothelial dysfunction, which triggers inflammation. This inflammation, in turn, thickens the blood and elevates the process of blood clotting.
Additionally, smoking increases your blood pressure, which in turn puts extra weight on your blood vessels. All extra strain heightens the probability of heart damage and blood clot formation.
Furthermore, smoking is also known to increase levels of clotting due to the presence of a protein known as fibrinogen. The higher the levels of fibrinogen, the stickier the blood.
Time to Understand Science Behind Blood Clot from Smoking
Numerous scientific studies and research state and validate a link between smoking and blood clots. Studies reveal that smokers are more prone to develop blood clots as compared to non-smokers. The more the number of cigarettes you smoke, the more the risk of blood clots.
For your better understanding, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association stated that smokers were at two times more risk of getting diagnosed with Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT). For those who don’t know, DVT is a type of blood clot that forms in the legs of smokers. It can get displaced and travel up to the lungs, which can cause heart blockage, a life-threatening condition.
Other than Blood Problems: More Dangers of Smoking
The potential harms of smoking don’t just stop at having blood clots. The damaging habit of smoking also increases your risk of having cardiovascular diseases, which include heart attacks and strokes. Additionally, smoking harms the heart muscles, narrows arteries, and much more, which can further lead to the possibility of having heart attacks. This can further damage blood vessels in the brain as well, leading to an increase in the risk of stroke.
It is time to break free from the Habit of Smoking.
After reading everything above, you might be thinking about either giving up smoking or what and how to quit smoking. Well, the good news is you can quit smoking easily as soon as you decide to do it. The moment you realize that it’s one of the worst things you can do to yourself, you know you have to quit it.
Whether it’s your respiratory system, cardiovascular system, or any other part of your body, you can save all of them by deciding to quit smoking.
As soon as you quit smoking, your body starts to repair the harm caused to it by smoking. All the chances of having life-threatening problems, such as blood clots, heart diseases, etc., begin to decrease with each passing day without smoke.
If you are a smoker who is planning to quit smoking, always remember that you are not alone in this journey. There are a lot of resources available out there that can help you to stop smoking. Moreover, you can give up smoking using a solid mindset and other techniques such as mindfulness, meditation, physical exercise, etc.
Conclusion
Smoking might seem like a stress buster due to the release of feel-happy chemicals in your body. But, never forget that smoking is life-threatening, which doesn’t cause blood clotting but also harms your lungs, heart, and almost every vital organ of the body.
As soon as you understand the harm associated with smoking and take steps to quit, you reduce the chances of these harmful diseases and add days to your life. It might seem hard, and the process might seem harsh, but in the end, it will all be worth it. Your body will thank you for it.
